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The multi-studio nature of Rockstar Games gives them the enviable ability to shift ideas and mechanics between their own games, without having to wait for release. Whilst other companies might have to wait for big games to launch to be able to learn from them, Rockstar carves it's own identity within the industry with it's simlultaneous AAA development cycle. This is clearly shown in it's most recent batch of big games, namely: GTA IV, Red Dead Redemption and most recently of course, L.A. Noire.

L.A. Noire will most likely be seen as a landmark game in years to come, and who better to capatalise on this than Rockstar themselves? Nothing is official as yet of course, but it has to be GTA next and it could be a franchise to benefit greatly from Team Bondi's revolutionary crime thriller.

The first and most obvious area in which the GTA team could look to is the facial animation. Having developed the technology at their own studios and having had access to it long before anybody else, it would seem farfetched to assume they wouldnt implement it at least in part in GTA V. Not only could it help create a more immersive world and deeper characters but it could allow the story to be more dynamic and the development of characters, specifically the lead, more engaging. L.A Noire enables actors to be recognised almost instantly and this could really help push the boundries of the cast in a videogame. Perhaps rather than using the advantages of the facial subleties to accuse people in interrogations it could be used to alert the player to when a deal would be unwise or a character is seeking to undermine you. This really would take the big decisions of GTA IV (ala Playboy and Dwane) to the next level, perhaps more options could be introduced and the story could branch out in a number of different ways. Could GTA appeal to more non gamers in the way that L.A Noire did? Perhaps a friend or a girllfriend more interested in the story than the action. Rockstar love to tell a story and the this could give them the tools to craft their best yet.

These are of course lofty ambitions, one thing L.A Noire can tell us for sure is that Rockstar North will be really starting to push the boundries of the 360 with their next game. Frame rate and disk space will become big challenges for the last big games to close out this generation. Regardless, L.A. Noire shows great potential within the context of the Grand Theft Auto franchise and Rockstar are in the perfect position to take advantage of this over the coming years and months.